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106 Bible verses that are difficult to explain
I've found that the best way to explain something truly difficult is to have lived it firsthand. Walking the walk every day gives you the tools you need to share a message of salvation that can really reach people. There's just nothing like sharing a life-changing message that's rooted in your own experiences.
But here's the thing: it's so important to remember the role of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit has the full picture and the patience to guide us into a deeper understanding. We can't just rely on our own thinking or even other people's stories, because we might find ourselves at a loss when we try to share something we haven't truly encountered ourselves.
The Holy Spirit is ready and willing to teach us today. It's all about being open to that guidance.
For Christ also suffered for sins once for all time, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit;
in which He also went and made proclamation to the spirits in prison,
Again, there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them to present himself before the Lord.
Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for the number is that of a man; and his number is six hundred and sixty-six.
Now it came about, when mankind began to multiply on the face of the land, and daughters were born to them,
And Noah fathered three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Now the earth was corrupt in the sight of God, and the earth was filled with violence.
And God looked on the earth, and behold, it was corrupt; for humanity had corrupted its way upon the earth.
Then God said to Noah, “The end of humanity has come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence because of people; and behold, I am about to destroy them with the earth.
Make for yourself an ark of gopher wood; you shall make the ark with compartments, and cover it inside and out with pitch.
This is how you shall make it: the length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits.
You shall make a window for the ark, and finish it to a cubit from the top; and put the door of the ark on the side; you shall make it with lower, second, and third decks.
Now behold, I Myself am bringing the flood of water upon the earth, to destroy all flesh in which there is the breath of life, from under heaven; everything that is on the earth shall perish.
But I will establish My covenant with you; and you shall enter the ark—you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you.
And of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every kind into the ark, to keep them alive with you; they shall be male and female.
that the sons of God saw that the daughters of mankind were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves, whomever they chose.
Of the birds according to their kind, and of the animals according to their kind, of every crawling thing of the ground according to its kind, two of every kind will come to you to keep them alive.
As for you, take for yourself some of every food that is edible, and gather it to yourself; and it shall be food for you and them.”
So Noah did these things; according to everything that God had commanded him, so he did.
Then the Lord said, “My Spirit will not remain with man forever, because he is also flesh; nevertheless his days shall be 120 years.”
The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of mankind, and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.
And the pig, for though it has a divided hoof, and so it shows a split hoof, it does not chew cud; it is unclean to you.
Only in the cities of these peoples that the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, you shall not leave anything that breathes alive.
Instead, you shall utterly destroy them, the Hittite and the Amorite, the Canaanite and the Perizzite, the Hivite and the Jebusite, just as the Lord your God has commanded you,
And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord and said, “If You will indeed hand over to me the sons of Ammon,
then whatever comes out the doors of my house to meet me when I return safely from the sons of Ammon, it shall be the Lord’s, and I will offer it up as a burnt offering.”
Now the anger of the Lord burned against Israel again, and He incited David against them to say, “Go, count Israel and Judah.”
Then he said to him, “I too am a prophet like you, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the Lord, saying, ‘Bring him back with you to your house, so that he may eat bread and drink water.’ ” But he lied to him.
But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.
Then the Lord answered Job from the whirlwind and said,
And I placed boundaries on it And set a bolt and doors,
And I said, ‘As far as this point you shall come, but no farther; And here your proud waves shall stop’?
¶“Have you ever in your life commanded the morning, And made the dawn know its place,
So that it would take hold of the ends of the earth, And the wicked would be shaken off from it?
“It is changed like clay under the seal; And they stand out like a garment.
“Their light is withheld from the wicked, And the uplifted arm is broken.
¶“Have you entered the springs of the sea, And walked in the depth of the ocean?
“Have the gates of death been revealed to you, And have you seen the gates of deep darkness?
“Have you understood the expanse of the earth? Tell Me, if you know all this.
¶“Where is the way to the dwelling of light? And darkness, where is its place,
“Who is this who darkens the divine plan By words without knowledge?
That you would take it to its territory, And discern the paths to its home?
“You know, for you were born then, And the number of your days is great!
“Have you entered the storehouses of the snow, And have you seen the storehouses of the hail,
Which I have reserved for a time of distress, For a day of war and battle?
“Where is the way that the light is divided, And the east wind scattered on the earth?
¶“Who has split open a channel for the flood, And a way for the thunderbolt,
To bring rain on a land without people, On a desert without a person in it,
To satisfy the waste and desolate land, And to make the seeds of grass to sprout?
“Does the rain have a father? Or who has fathered the drops of dew?
“From whose womb has come the ice? And the frost of heaven, who has given it birth?
“Now tighten the belt on your waist like a man, And I shall ask you, and you inform Me!
“Water becomes hard like stone, And the surface of the deep is imprisoned.
¶“Can you tie up the chains of the Pleiades, Or untie the cords of Orion?
“Can you bring out a constellation in its season, And guide the Bear with her satellites?
“Do you know the ordinances of the heavens, Or do you establish their rule over the earth?
¶“Can you raise your voice to the clouds, So that an abundance of water will cover you?
“Can you send flashes of lightning, so that they may go And say to you, ‘Here we are’?
“Who has put wisdom in the innermost being, Or given understanding to the mind?
“Who can count the clouds by wisdom, And pour out the water jars of the heavens,
When the dust hardens into a mass And the clods stick together?
¶“Can you hunt the prey for the lioness, Or satisfy the appetite of young lions,
“Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding,
that the sons of God saw that the daughters of mankind were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves, whomever they chose.
that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him.
Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth Does not become weary or tired. His understanding is unsearchable.
Do not answer a fool according to his foolishness, Or you will also be like him.
Answer a fool as his foolishness deserves, So that he will not be wise in his own eyes.
For the fate of the sons of mankind and the fate of animals is the same. As one dies, so dies the other; indeed, they all have the same breath, and there is no advantage for mankind over animals, for all is futility.
A time to give birth and a time to die; A time to plant and a time to uproot what is planted.
All go to the same place. All came from the dust and all return to the dust.
Who knows that the spirit of the sons of mankind ascends upward and the spirit of the animal descends downward to the earth?
The One forming light and creating darkness, Causing well-being and creating disaster; I am the Lord who does all these things.
The children gather wood, the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead dough to make sacrificial cakes for the queen of heaven; and they pour out drink offerings to other gods in order to provoke Me to anger.
I also gave them statutes that were not good, and ordinances by which they could not live;
and I pronounced them unclean because of their gifts, in that they made all their firstborn pass through the fire so that I might make them desolate, in order that they might know that I am the Lord.” ’
“Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the wrongdoing, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for guilt, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy Place.
So you are to know and understand that from the issuing of a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem, until Messiah the Prince, there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; it will be built again, with streets and moat, even in times of distress.
Then after the sixty-two weeks, the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. And its end will come with a flood; even to the end there will be war; desolations are determined.
And he will confirm a covenant with the many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering; and on the wing of abominations will come the one who makes desolate, until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, gushes forth on the one who makes desolate.”
Now if your right eye is causing you to sin, tear it out and throw it away from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.
“ Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
And if your right hand is causing you to sin, cut it off and throw it away from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to go into hell.
“Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.
“Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven.
And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.
And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabaktanei?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”
The one who has believed and has been baptized will be saved; but the one who has not believed will be condemned.
“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.
So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves.
And they drew lots for them, and the lot fell to Matthias; and he was added to the eleven apostles.
What then? What Israel is seeking, it has not obtained, but those who were chosen obtained it, and the rest were hardened;
just as it is written: “God gave them a spirit of stupor, Eyes to see not and ears to hear not, Down to this very day.”
Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy way, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord.
But a person must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup.
For the one who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not properly recognize the body.
But I want you to understand that Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman, and God is the head of Christ.
For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number are asleep.
For otherwise, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them?
Because of the extraordinary greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me—to keep me from exalting myself!
Concerning this I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might leave me.
And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.
just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love
For to you it has been granted for Christ’s sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer on His behalf,
for by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones, or dominions, or rulers, or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him.
He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.
For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit,
and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,
and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame.
For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,
but a terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries.
If anyone sees his brother or sister committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask and God will, for him, give life to those who commit sin not leading to death. There is sin leading to death; I am not saying that he should ask about that.
The one who overcomes will be clothed the same way, in white garments; and I will not erase his name from the book of life, and I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.
Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled, and no place was found for them.
And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds.
And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them; and they were judged, each one of them according to their deeds.
Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.
And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,
burn for burn, wound for wound, bruise for bruise.
“If two men, a man and his countryman, have a fight with each other, and the wife of one comes up to save her husband from the hand of the one who is hitting him, and she reaches out with her hand and grasps that man’s genitals,
then you shall cut off her hand; you shall not show pity.
She said, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And he awoke from his sleep and said, “I will go out as at other times and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had departed from him.
Now go and strike Amalek and completely destroy everything that he has, and do not spare him; but put to death both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’ ”
And as they were walking along and talking, behold, a chariot of fire appeared with horses of fire, and they separated the two of them. Then Elijah went up by a whirlwind to heaven.
And Elisha was watching it and he was crying out, “My father, my father, the chariot of Israel and its horsemen!” And he did not see Elijah again. Then he took hold of his own clothes and tore them in two pieces.
He said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, And naked I shall return there. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
¶For You created my innermost parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb.
I will give thanks to You, because I am awesomely and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from You When I was made in secret, And skillfully formed in the depths of the earth;
Your eyes have seen my formless substance; And in Your book were written All the days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was not one of them.
¶However, it was our sicknesses that He Himself bore, And our pains that He carried; Yet we ourselves assumed that He had been afflicted, Struck down by God, and humiliated.
But He was pierced for our offenses, He was crushed for our wrongdoings; The punishment for our well-being was laid upon Him, And by His wounds we are healed.
For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for prosperity and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.
The hand of the Lord was upon me, and He brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of the valley; and it was full of bones.
So I prophesied as He commanded me, and the breath entered them, and they came to life and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army.
Then He said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the entire house of Israel; behold, they say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope has perished. We are completely cut off.’
Therefore prophesy and say to them, ‘This is what the Lord God says: “Behold, I am going to open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves, My people; and I will bring you into the land of Israel.
Then you will know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves and caused you to come up out of your graves, My people.
And I will put My Spirit within you and you will come to life, and I will place you on your own land. Then you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken and done it,” declares the Lord.’ ”
“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it.
For the gate is narrow and the way is constricted that leads to life, and there are few who find it.
“But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne.
And all the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, just as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats;
and He will put the sheep on His right, but the goats on the left.
“Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in;
naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.’
Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink?
And when did we see You as a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You?
And when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’
but the prudent ones took oil in flasks with their lamps.
And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it for one of the least of these brothers or sisters of Mine, you did it for Me.’
“Then He will also say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, you accursed people, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels;
for I was hungry, and you gave Me nothing to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink;
I was a stranger, and you did not invite Me in; naked, and you did not clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.’
Then they themselves also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or as a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not take care of You?’
Then He will answer them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it for one of the least of these, you did not do it for Me, either.’
These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
“Now there was a rich man, and he habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, enjoying himself in splendor every day.
And he summoned him and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an accounting of your management, for you can no longer be manager.’
And a poor man named Lazarus was laid at his gate, covered with sores,
and longing to be fed from the scraps which fell from the rich man’s table; not only that, the dogs also were coming and licking his sores.
Now it happened that the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s arms; and the rich man also died and was buried.
And in Hades he raised his eyes, being in torment, and *saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his arms.
And he cried out and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus, so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.’
But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony.
And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set, so that those who want to go over from here to you will not be able, nor will any people cross over from there to us.’
And he said, ‘Then I request of you, father, that you send him to my father’s house—
for I have five brothers—in order that he may warn them, so that they will not come to this place of torment as well.’
But Abraham *said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’
And the manager said to himself, ‘What am I to do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig; I am ashamed to beg.
But he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!’
But he said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’ ”
In My Father’s house are many rooms; if that were not so, I would have told you, because I am going there to prepare a place for you.
On that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you are in Me, and I in you.
The one who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and the one who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will reveal Myself to him.”
Judas (not Iscariot) *said to Him, “Lord, what has happened that You are going to reveal Yourself to us and not to the world?”
Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will follow My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our dwelling with him.
The one who does not love Me does not follow My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine, but the Father’s who sent Me.
“These things I have spoken to you while remaining with you.
But the Helper, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and remind you of all that I said to you.
Peace I leave you, My peace I give you; not as the world gives, do I give to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled, nor fearful.
You heard that I said to you, ‘I am going away, and I am coming to you.’ If you loved Me, you would have rejoiced because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I.
And now I have told you before it happens, so that when it happens, you may believe.
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I am coming again and will take you to Myself, so that where I am, there you also will be.
When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.
Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya around Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes,
Cretans and Arabs—we hear them speaking in our own tongues of the mighty deeds of God.”
And they all continued in amazement and great perplexity, saying to one another, “What does this mean?”
But others were jeering and saying, “They are full of sweet wine!”
But Peter, taking his stand with the other eleven, raised his voice and declared to them: “Men of Judea and all you who live in Jerusalem, know this, and pay attention to my words.
For these people are not drunk, as you assume, since it is only the third hour of the day;
but this is what has been spoken through the prophet Joel:
‘And it shall be in the last days,’ God says, ‘That I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; And your sons and your daughters will prophesy, And your young men will see visions, And your old men will have dreams;
And even on My male and female servants I will pour out My Spirit in those days, And they will prophesy.
‘And I will display wonders in the sky above And signs on the earth below, Blood, fire, and vapor of smoke.
And suddenly a noise like a violent rushing wind came from heaven, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.
‘The sun will be turned into darkness And the moon into blood, Before the great and glorious day of the Lord comes.
‘And it shall be that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’
“Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a Man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know—
this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death.
But God raised Him from the dead, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power.
For David says of Him, ‘I saw the Lord continually before me, Because He is at my right hand, so that I will not be shaken.
‘Therefore my heart was glad and my tongue was overjoyed; Moreover my flesh also will live in hope;
For You will not abandon my soul to Hades, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.
‘You have made known to me the ways of life; You will make me full of gladness with Your presence.’
“Brothers, I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.
And tongues that looked like fire appeared to them, distributing themselves, and a tongue rested on each one of them.
So because he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one of his descendants on his throne,
he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that He was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did His flesh suffer decay.
It is this Jesus whom God raised up, a fact to which we are all witnesses.
Therefore, since He has been exalted at the right hand of God, and has received the promise of the Holy Spirit from the Father, He has poured out this which you both see and hear.
For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand,
Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.” ’
Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified.”
Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what are we to do?”
Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far away, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.”
And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with different tongues, as the Spirit was giving them the ability to speak out.
And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.
If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet only so as through fire.
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive compensation for his deeds done through the body, in accordance with what he has done, whether good or bad.
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a person sows, this he will also reap.
For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;
not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
For many walk, of whom I often told you, and now tell you even as I weep, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ,
whose end is destruction, whose god is their appetite, and whose glory is in their shame, who have their minds on earthly things.
But women will be preserved through childbirth—if they continue in faith, love, and sanctity, with moderation.
And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for the one who comes to God must believe that He exists, and that He proves to be One who rewards those who seek Him.
No one is to say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone.
But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust.
according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you.
By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments.
The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him;
and nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
If you do well, will your face not be cheerful? And if you do not do well, sin is lurking at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it.”
—for you shall not worship any other god, because the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God—
If there is a man who sleeps with a male as those who sleep with a woman, both of them have committed a detestable act; they must be put to death. They have brought their own deaths upon themselves.
“You shall not eat anything which dies of itself. You may give it to the stranger who is in your town, so that he may eat it, or you may sell it to a stranger; for you are a holy people to the Lord your God. You shall not boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.
This is what the Lord says: ‘Behold, I am going to raise up evil against you from your own household; I will even take your wives before your eyes and give them to your companion, and he will sleep with your wives in broad daylight.
Indeed, you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, and in open daylight.’ ”
Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has allowed your sin to pass; you shall not die.
However, since by this deed you have shown utter disrespect for the Lord, the child himself who is born to you shall certainly die.”
Trust in the Lord with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight.
Because in much wisdom there is much grief; and increasing knowledge results in increasing pain.
“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord.
“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways And My thoughts than your thoughts.
“This sentence is by the decree of the angelic watchers, And the decision is a command of the holy ones, In order that the living may know That the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind, And He grants it to whomever He wishes And sets over it the lowliest of people.”
My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Since you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being My priest. Since you have forgotten the Law of your God, I also will forget your children.
but I have hated Esau, and I have made his mountains a desolation and given his inheritance to the jackals of the wilderness.”
Jesus presented another parable to them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field.
But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and left.
And when the wheat sprouted and produced grain, then the weeds also became evident.
And the slaves of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’
And he said to them, ‘An enemy has done this!’ The slaves *said to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?’
But he *said, ‘No; while you are gathering up the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them.
And He told them many things in parables, saying, “Behold, the sower went out to sow;
Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and at the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather up the weeds and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’ ”
And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
Looking at them, Jesus *said, “With people it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God.”
Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure—pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.”
“I can do nothing on My own. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of Him who sent Me.
So then, it does not depend on the person who wants it nor the one who runs, but on God who has mercy.
But a natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.
And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing,
in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they will not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
For the desire of the flesh is against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, in order to keep you from doing whatever you want.
So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience;
bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so must you do also.
In addition to all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity.
For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality;
that each of you know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor,
not in lustful passion, like the Gentiles who do not know God;
All Scripture is inspired by God and beneficial for teaching, for rebuke, for correction, for training in righteousness;
so that the man or woman of God may be fully capable, equipped for every good work.
who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, eager for good deeds.
Therefore, since we also have such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let’s rid ourselves of every obstacle and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let’s run with endurance the race that is set before us,
For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness.
For the moment, all discipline seems not to be pleasant, but painful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterward it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.
Therefore, strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble,
and make straight paths for your feet, so that the limb which is impaired may not be dislocated, but rather be healed.
Pursue peace with all people, and the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.
See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many become defiled;
that there be no sexually immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal.
For you know that even afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears.
For you have not come to a mountain that can be touched and to a blazing fire, and to darkness and gloom and whirlwind,
and to the blast of a trumpet and the sound of words, which sound was such that those who heard begged that no further word be spoken to them.
looking only at Jesus, the originator and perfecter of the faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.